The present invention is directed towards a new and improved credit card and money carrying device for holding foldable currency and credit type cards or identification cards together in a convenient, easy to use arrangement.
Money clips have been used for a long time to hold folded currency and are designed to be carried in a pants or jacket pocket or other area. These money clips are fashioned from a single piece of bent or formed metal stock generally in the form of a spring clip and are available in plated or solid precious metals, stainless steel, bronze or nickel.
The demise of popularity for the money clip in the past decade can be directly attributed to the demand for and growth in the use of credit cards and the accompanying need to conveniently and securely carry on one's person. This change has been brought about by the emergence of the credit card and its impact on society, banking and the very nature of monetary transactions. The credit card has now become a standard item for most adults in the United States. Each card complies with a defacto standard with respect to size, shape, dimensions and weight. The proliferation of these credit card sized devices hall led to the adoption of the same sized devices for use in a wide array of identification cards. These include ATM cards, bank cards, phone cards, driver's licenses, smart keys and other identification cards.
Most money clips do not adequately accommodate credit cards and other types of cards, many which were originally designed prior to the widespread use of credit and other type cards. Those that do often pose the disadvantage of added weight and bulk caused by the need for a heavy spring attachment to keep the cards in place.
The primary carrying device for credit cards and money for men and women has been in the form of a wallet or small pocketbook. With the attire which has been adopted by the public in casual, business or formal dress, wallets and pocketbooks have become bulky and in some instances uncomfortable when driving distances, or sitting in a theatre or restaurant. Furthermore, changes in the money and banking industry including the widespread use of the automated teller machines and consumer credit cards have changed the way people organize, handle and carry their money. Checkbooks are not as frequently used and cash can easily be obtained from a cash machine with a credit card. Women do not desire to carry a purse around with them which is clearly visible and can be easy target for a thief or placed aside and forgotten or displaced. It is now common to carry a small amount of money, the primary means for purchase or lease being credit which increases personal security as there is less to steal and less personal monetary risk. In addition to the monetary loss risk, a disturbing influence has cropped up in society which is directed toward personal risk in that persons with bulging pockets or pocketbooks may be subject to brutal attack and suffer physical and physiological harm through street attacks and robbery.
While money clips are a convenient way to carry folded money, they do not work very well in carrying credit cards, driver's licenses or other card identifications as the same tend to fall out of money clips or are bent, scratched, broken or destroyed by the money clip while being carried or removed.
It is estimated that by 1995 smart card technology will become common place providing yet another card sized identification device able to contain important personal information ranging from health information to banking, credit, telephone and other data.
These factors combine to create the need for a carrying device that can accommodate denominational money bills as well as a wide variety of credit card sized items. The carrying device should be capable of being carried in any pocket and also be capable of carrying up to ten different cards and a quantity of bills.
A number of patents have been obtained to attempt to provide a suitable currency or a credit card and identification carrier for individuals. U.S. Pat. No. 5,077,869 is directed towards a credit card/money clip device with a folded metal clip member adapted to hold folded currency and a T-shaped elastic band fastened to the clip member to retain credit cards and identification cards. U.S. Pat. No. 4,675,953 discloses a money clip with a base and operative clip member mounted to the base. The clip member has a pair of semi-elastic legs terminated in opposed staggered but parallel journals, pivotally mounted in bearings to provide offset parallel pivotal axes. The semi-elastic legs flex and cross through an over-center plane between a closed, clamping position and an inoperative open position. U.S. Pat. No. 3,555,623 discloses a paper money clip made of a length of spring wire in the form of a rectangular cylindrical helix on which is mounted a carrier plate. A resilient pad is secured to the coin facing surface of the carrier plate and functions with the bent over ears of the carrier plate to retain coins. U.S. Pat. No. 3,861,002 discloses a money clip constructed of a double clip member of spring wire or sheet spring material. A central clip element is common to both elements of the double clip which holds the money in place while allowing removal of a single bill from a stack of paper money. U.S. Pat. No. 3,623,193 discloses a money clip with a rectangular coiled spring structure held in place by an outer ring and inner disc medallion. The coiled spring has sufficient resiliency to open and close. U.S. Pat. No. 3,596,757 discloses a coin holding device, in combination with a paper money clip mounted within the framework of a paper money clip. The money clip is of the type having a rectangular helix of spring wire which functions to hold the paper money. The housing of the coin holder contains a resilient bowed plate which serves as a bias element for the coins and also encloses two legs of the money clip allowing the money clip and coin holding device to be operated independently of the other. U.S. Pat. No. 4,540,034 discloses a money clip mounted in a wallet, the clip being formed from resilient material and formed with two arms connected by a flexure section, the arms holding currency by virtue of a flexural torquing deformation around an axis through the flexure section.
As a result of the present need, the present invention is directed towards a new and improved credit card and money carrying device for conveniently carrying a number of credit sized cards, identification cards and folding monies in a convenient, easy manner in a pants pocket, shirt pocket or the like.